This week’s #MemberMonday spotlight features Rachel Putnam, proud UFCW 3000 member and Pharmacy Tech!

Rachel has wanted a career in healthcare for as long as she can remember. From early childhood, she has been fascinated by the human body and how it works; because of this, Rachel decided to pursue a career in Pharmacy! Rachel says: “I chose this path because I have taken daily medication since I was 8 years old, so the pharmacy has always played a pretty big role in my life.”

Rachel joined Group Health in 2014, which later was acquired by Kaiser Permanente. Reflecting back, Rachel says that “what I admired most was their promotion of innovative healthcare. The world is always changing, as is the world of medicine, and this is a company that not only changes with it, but also promotes change for the better.”

 If you spend even a few minutes with Rachel, it will become very clear to you that she is very passionate and knowledgeable about her work! Her coworkers know this very well because, in 2021, Rachel became a Union shop steward. Rachel wanted to step up as a leader because she wanted to do her part to bring about change for the better and to fight for workers’ rights in her workplace. In her words: “Every worker is a person, and therefore every one of them should have a voice. Employees are not just employees — they are human beings with families, their own goals and dreams, and lives outside of the workplace. I became a steward to be part of making this more widely acknowledged and respected.”

In talking about what victories are just around the corner, Rachel is confident she can help her workplace improve! “My goal as a Shop Steward is to make a difference in how workers are treated, and push alongside my fellow stewards for better staffing, better working conditions, better pay, and more protection for workers who face bias or unfair treatment. I want to be a part of something bigger than myself, and to be a part of driving the change that will allow working people to have the influence and respect that they deserve.”

Since becoming a shop steward, Rachel has become more involved with UFCW trainings for Stewards, delivered strong messages in videos about Safe Staffing legislation, and continues to participate in monthly Steward Workshops to gain more knowledge and to ultimately help her coworkers stand together for the change they want to see at work!

We are so inspired by Rachel’s leadership. It’s people like Rachel that make UFCW 3000 members such incredible advocates for themselves and their coworkers. If you’d like to learn more about becoming a shop steward and leadership training, check out: https://www.ufcw21.org/steward-training

#UFCW3000 #MemberMondays #1u #UnionStrong #EssentialWorkers #HealthcareHeroes